Wold Foundation

The Wold Foundation operates as a lean, family-controlled private foundation with an all-volunteer board — John P. Wold (President/Trustee), Peter I. Wold (Treasurer/Trustee), and Priscilla Longfield (Secretary/Trustee) draw zero compensation. Founded in 1985 by John and Jane Wold in Casper, Wyoming, the foundation experienced dramatic growth from approximately $1.4M in assets in 2015 to over $53M by 2019-2023, a trajectory tied to the Wold family's prominence in Wyoming's oil and gas industry.

The foundation's ethos is rooted in self-reliance and earned opportunity. Its stated philosophy favors 'helping people help themselves' — language drawn explicitly from the John Wold Help Yourself Academy — and supports organizations that build skills, foster independence, and create pathways to productive lives. This is not generic language; applicants who echo it with specificity (workforce training components, earned-income elements, measurable skill outcomes) will outperform those who frame requests in dependency-centric or entitlement terms.

There is no LOI stage. First-time applicants proceed directly to the online GrantInterface portal, keeping the entry barrier low. However, the grantee data reveals a strong preference for long-term relationships: the YMCA of Natrona County has received 19 grants totaling $714,500, the Oregon Symphony 3 grants totaling $170,000, and the Boys and Girls Club of Central Wyoming 3 grants totaling $90,000. These relationships were built incrementally. First-time applicants should target modest requests ($10,000-$25,000) and position the application as the beginning of a multi-year relationship.

The foundation's geographic reach is concentrated in Wyoming (50.1% of grants by count) and Colorado (25.5%), but it also funds organizations in Massachusetts, Oregon, Connecticut, Texas, and New York — typically institutions with Wold family personal ties: prep schools attended by family members, medical centers conducting research areas of personal concern (ophthalmology at OHSU, cancer at MD Anderson), and universities where family scholarships and chairs are endowed. Out-of-state applicants without an existing relationship should demonstrate direct Wyoming or Colorado community impact.

Note that the Wold Foundation (EIN 74-2406069, Casper WY) is a distinct entity from the Betty Wold Johnson Foundation (associated with the New York Jets/Woody Johnson). Ensure you are applying to the correct foundation via woldfoundation.org.

Across 337 documented grants totaling $9,307,853, the Wold Foundation averages $27,620 per grant. However, the median grant is $5,000 — far below the mean — confirming a strongly right-skewed distribution where a small number of large capital and institutional gifts drive the average upward.

Grant range: $250 (nominal/symbolic gifts) to $500,000 (capital campaigns). The $500,000 ceiling appears reserved for capital campaigns with multi-grant histories: National Western Stock Show received $2,000,000 across 4 grants, and Children's Hospital Colorado Foundation has received $2,063,500 across 13 grants. These two grantees alone account for nearly 44% of all documented giving, making them dominant outliers rather than typical recipients.

Annual giving trajectory: - Fiscal 2019: $2.80M total giving / $1.98M grants paid - Fiscal 2020: $3.19M total giving / $2.53M grants paid - Fiscal 2021: $3.48M total giving / $2.71M grants paid - Fiscal 2022: $4.07M total giving / $3.25M grants paid (peak) - Fiscal 2023: $3.47M total giving / $2.80M grants paid - Fiscal 2024: $53.1M assets, revenue $2.5M; grants paid data not yet filed

Total assets have been stable at $52-57M since 2019. The foundation receives zero outside contributions — 100% endowment-funded via investment income ($3.45M net investment income in fiscal 2023). This self-sufficiency gives the board complete discretion over grantmaking with no donor-direction pressure.

Geographic distribution by grant count: Wyoming 50.1% (169 grants), Colorado 25.5% (86 grants), Massachusetts 5.0% (17 grants), Oregon 3.9% (13 grants), Connecticut 3.0% (10 grants), Texas 2.1% (7 grants), New York 1.8% (6 grants), California 1.5% (5 grants).

Estimated focus area breakdown by dollar volume: Healthcare and medical research ~33% (Children's Hospital CO, OHSU ophthalmology, MD Anderson cancer research, hospice care); Education ~28% (UW Foundation endowed chairs, Casper College scholarships, private schools, Teton Science School); Human services and youth programs ~20% (YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, Planned Parenthood, food bank, hospice); Cultural, conservation, and civic ~19% (National Western Stock Show capital campaign, Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom, Buffalo Bill Center, athletics).

(Peer asset and giving figures are approximate, based on publicly reported IRS data and foundation websites.)

The Wold Foundation occupies a distinctive middle position in the Wyoming philanthropic landscape: larger and more capable of institutional-scale capital gifts than most local community foundations, yet far smaller and more personally connected than regional powerhouses like the Daniels Fund. Its $53M endowment self-funds grantmaking with no dependence on outside contributions, giving the three Wold family trustees complete discretion over priorities.

Unlike the Daniels Fund — which runs structured competitive scholarship programs with formal review panels and published scoring criteria — the Wold Foundation is a relationship-driven family board where decisions are made by three trustees who knew grantees personally in many cases. This structure rewards applicants who invest in direct relationship-building before submitting. Compared to Wyoming Community Foundation, which distributes across all community sectors statewide, the Wold Foundation concentrates larger individual grants in specific program areas aligned with family interests — making it a better fit for healthcare capital, STEM education, energy workforce development, and conservation than for broad social service or infrastructure requests.

The most significant confirmed recent grant is the January 29, 2025 commitment of $225,000 to the University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources, establishing the Wold Foundation Oil and Gas Student Success Fund. Wyoming's state matching program doubled the contribution to $450,000 total. The fund supports graduate fellowships for students in SER's Centers of Excellence, scholarships, experiential learning, and high school and community college outreach. Board member Peter Wold publicly stated: 'We are very excited to be working with the School of Energy Resources to support student success in a wide variety of areas.' SER Executive Director Holly Krutka described the Wold Foundation as 'an incredible partner' with a 'hands-on approach to providing research and industry opportunities for students.'

This 2025 grant extends a relationship dating to 1990, when the Wold family established UW's first fully funded endowed chair. The UW Foundation has now received at least $545,000 across 4 documented grants from this foundation, with grantmaking purposes including a Centennial Chair in Energy, the Ranch Management and College of Agriculture Leadership Fund, and student success initiatives.

No leadership changes have been documented for 2024-2026 — the board of three trustees (John P. Wold, Peter I. Wold, Priscilla Longfield) has been stable across at least four consecutive fiscal years of available data. The foundation has no public social media presence and does not issue press releases independently; the UW announcement above was made by the university, not the foundation.

Total giving moderated from the fiscal 2022 peak of $4.07M to $3.47M in fiscal 2023, likely reflecting investment portfolio performance rather than a strategic retrenchment — total assets have remained stable at $53-54M.

Choose your cycle strategically. The Spring Cycle (April 15 deadline) yields decisions in June — ideal for programs launching in fall 2026 or fiscal years beginning July 1. The Fall Cycle (October 15 deadline) yields December decisions — optimal for calendar-year initiatives launching January 2027 or capital projects with Q1 construction starts. The foundation will not consider more than one request per organization per year across both cycles, so treat this as an annual commitment, not a two-attempt process.

Use the foundation's own language. The guidelines and mission materials repeatedly use 'helping people help themselves' and 'leading productive lives.' Proposals for workforce training, youth leadership, agricultural education, and earned-income pathways should mirror this language exactly. Programs that position beneficiaries as passive recipients — welfare-framed narratives, entitlement language, or dependency-based theories of change — will resonate poorly with this board.

Frame as a special project, not general operating support. The foundation explicitly prefers discrete, bounded initiatives over open-ended subsidies. Even if you are seeking support for recurring program costs, present it as a defined project: a specific cohort, a named initiative, a capital phase, or an annual fellowship program with measurable deliverables.

Right-size your first request. With a median grant of $5,000 and average of $27,620, a first-time request of $10,000-$25,000 is far more credible than a $100,000 ask. The largest single grants ($200,000-$500,000) appear only in anchor relationships spanning 4-19 grants over many years. Build the relationship before scaling.

Confirm your eligibility checklist before starting. The foundation will not fund: church or faith-based organizational projects, endowment campaigns, debt retirement, loans or grants to individuals, conduit/pass-through arrangements, lobbying or political activity, court-related projects, or previously denied proposals in the same form. These exclusions are firm and non-negotiable.

Demonstrate Wyoming or Colorado impact. Out-of-state organizations must articulate a direct benefit to Wyoming or Colorado communities — a research collaboration, student scholarships designated for Wyoming residents, or services used by Casper-area families. Generic national program descriptions without geographic specificity will lose to local applicants.

Apply at grantinterface.com/Home/Logon?urlkey=woldfoundation. No LOI is required — submit directly. Create your account at least two weeks before the deadline to allow time for system onboarding and technical support if needed.